1) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image formation apparatus for and method of printing print data.
2) Description of the Related Art
Recently, a usage pattern such that one printer is commonly used by a plurality of users through a network has been increased. In such a usage pattern, if a document such as a confidential document is to be confidentially printed, a user has to take care of a printing timing by, for example, checking that no other users are present around the printer. To solve this case, there has been a system in which a dedicated password is set to a document using a copy server function, the document is transferred to a hard disk drive of a printer, the password is input through the operation of an input panel of the printer to enter a queue for managing a printing order, and the document is output after checking the password.
However, according to a conventional image formation apparatus, if a user inputs a password of print data for a confidential document for an entry in a queue, then the print data for the confidential document is handled in the same manner as ordinary print data from that time forward. Therefore, in order to prevent a print from being seen by any other users, the user must wait for complete of the print in front of the apparatus no matter how long it takes to print the print data for the confidential document.